Restaurants in Brandon

Newcomers to Byblos Cafe may think they’ve stumbled into a sultan’s court: belly dancers wind their way past private enclaves replete with plush footstools and gossamer curtains, and heaping trays of charbroiled meats fill the air with the scents of basil and mint. The sultry atmosphere reflects owners Roger and Ziad Estephan’s mission to share their Lebanese heritage, which they do through every minor and major detail.

Beyond the glowing candles scattered throughout the dining areas, chefs draw upon Estephan family recipes to prepare a menu of traditional Mediterranean dishes. They hand roll grape leaves around spiced rice and herbs, and they marinate meats in fragrant blends of olive oil, lemon, and garlic—the base ingredients in Lebanese Febreze. Additionally, Byblos Cafe houses an international market where diners can stock up on Middle Eastern groceries.

During World War I, Greek immigrant Louis Pappas served in the Army as a personal chef to General John Pershing. To give the hungry general some extra nutrition, Louis began adding scoops of potato salad to his traditional greek salads. When Louis returned to the United States, he opened up his own restaurant, Louis Pappas Riverside Café, where he would re-create this signature dish using fresh produce from his own ranch in Tarpon Springs.

Today, Louis Pappas's grandson continues his grandfather's old Florida family tradition at Pappas Ranch. There, he and his kitchen serve up a new menu of fresh seafood, poultry, sandwiches, street tacos, hand-cut steaks, and barbecue dishes whose "family flair" has been lauded by Metromix Tampa Bay. They continue to scoop savory housemade potato salad into their internationally renowned Louis Pappas Famous greek salad, tossing it in massive bowls that serve as many as four diners. Bartenders dole out glasses of locally brewed craft beers and wine or mix cocktails and martinis at the full center bar with flat-screen TVs.

The restaurant's decor channels that of the original Pappas family ranch. In the dining room, spacious booths are surrounded by rustic wooden walls, and outside is a covered outdoor patio.

A samurai uniform stands proudly behind glass, welcoming patrons into Joto Japanese Restaurant. The suit's gleaming black mask reflects a sushi bar with a cerulean awning and seats the deep red of raw bluefin tuna. There, the hands of chefs flutter over such eclectic ingredients as pineapple, baked crab, and smelt, twisting them into rolls with names such as Fly to Hawaii, What Saapp, and Screaming Tuna. The wind tousles the leaves of potted plants on a small outdoor patio, where toasting glasses unleash the soft clinks of a xylophonist’s ghost.

Inspired by the unique tastes and recipes of the Iberian peninsula, Chef Felix Piedra crafts a menu of inventive tapas and entrees to complement the spicy atmosphere of his Vizcaya Restaurante and Tapas Bar. There, he cooks up hot and cold tapas—dishes designed for sharing—featuring exotic seafood and béchamel sauce and infuses entrees such as Black Angus filet and paella with Spanish touches such as piquillo peppers. Piedra's sommeliers curate an extensive wine list that includes varietals from Spain, Argentina, and Australia, though patrons sometimes eschew international bottles for glasses of sangria, made in-house from caramelized fruit and muscatel and Rioja wines. Occasionally during dinner hours, flamenco dancers perform their passionate dance moves on the restaurant's stage, spinning majestically to traditional Spanish music while stomping out the text of Don Quixote in Morse code.

Black-and-white portraits of Sophia Loren stare down at diners as sunlight bounces off the mirrors lining one wall of Gio's Italian Restaurant. After inspecting wine bottles lined up against the wall or arm-wrestling a date to determine who gets the tallest chair, guests can dig into sautéed fish or chicken, fresh salads, or Italian classics such as penne alla vodka.

EATS! American Grill culls its Americana-infused recipes from all across the country, creating a menu that ranges from cheesesteaks that pay homage to Philadelphia to marinated cuts of salmon that honor the Pacific Northwest. Patrons kick off their meals with New York buffalo wings, fried green tomatoes, or soups such as the 1880 Texas Chili, which evokes the 1800s with its old-fashioned spices rather than its refusal to believe in the Internet. Main dishes range from burgers and sandwiches to more upscale fare of crab cakes and rib-eye steaks. Visitors lounging at tables or seated at the full bar can tune in to the eatery’s 10 high-definition TVs, which glow with local teams’ games or entertainment for the younger set, such as Nickelodeon shows or stock reports about the market rate of Hot Wheels.